By 1871, the line would be extended as far as Oregon, Illinois.
In 1885, the Chicago, Burlington & Northern Railroad began construction of a line from La Crosse, Wisconsin to the Illinois/Wisconsin State Line, at East Dubuque.
The line would be extended as far as Oregon, Illinois in 1886, another 85 miles. At Savannah, a line dipped south towards the Quad Cities.
These two lines would be consolidated into the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy in 1899, which began operations of many lines in the area.
This line was one of the most important on the system, as it connected the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul with Chicago.
The line was eventually double tracked from Savannah to La Crosse by 1904. It would be finished to the Twin Cities in 1912.
The CB&Q bridge became a part of the Burlington Northern Railway in 1970, after combining with the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Railroads.
The BN merged with Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe in 1996. This line has become known as the Aurora Subdivision, which is a heavy mainline for BNSF.
10/25/22
Located west of Mt. Carroll, this small concrete slab is typical of grade separation structures on rural mainlines.
Built in 1916, the bridge features a single span concrete slab, set onto concrete substructures.
Once known as Bridge #A-17, the bridge is now operated by BNSF.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.